Saturday 17th, September 12:15 am
This is my first of many posts. I have been wanting to start my own blog for a while now, but being challenged in the area of computer technology, I put it in the too hard basket. If only I knew how easy it was to achieve, I could've been on here months ago. Well a little about myself, I am a stay at home Mum to 5 children, of which keep me extremely busy. I have been with my amazing husband Nathan for 13 yrs, married for 10 yrs. God has definately blessed us over the years. Many a time I am in awe that we have a family of 7, but deep down I guess God really knows the desires of our hearts. I always imagined having all these children, filling our home with lots of noise, laughter, and most of all LOVE. At times I end up in tears because I get so overwhelmed at not having enough hours in the day, or just because I feel housebound and somewhat underappreciated. It can be extremely frustrating to spend your entire day doing housework, that just gets messed up again before the day is through. Time and time again I ask the Lord to give me patience, and day by day there are obstacles and hurdles put in my path to test me. It is then that I need to take a moment to thak God for all that he has given me and look at the bigger picture.
I find spending so much time at home with little ones, I have so much on my mind but no-one to share these thoughts with, that having a Blog might help me to share what is on my mind. Well it is late and I have an early start tomorrow, so I'll sign off now. x
About Me
- Tamara Crowe
- I am 32yrs old, married to Nathan for 10 yrs and Mum to 5 children. Madison 9, Ezekiel 6, Annastasia 4, Sebastian 2 and Lilly-Mae 9mths.
Hi Tamara,
ReplyDeleteThis is Kim. I found you on Jenny's blog, and I really connected with your comments. I, too, am married to a fabulous guy who is definitely my best friend, and I'm a stay-at-home mom, although I only have 4 kids... looks like you kept going one more when we stopped :), as I have kids ages 10, 7, 4 and 2. (I'm 38.)
Anyway, I completely know your need for relationships with other moms, women and Christian friends! There have been times in my life when was lacking in that area, too, and I was lonely even when around people (who were really more acquaintances than true friends). And I'm SUCH a people-person, i.e. I need relationships to be fulfilled.
I just wanted to share with you that I'll be praying for you to find nourishing friendships! One of the ways I did that was through a moms support group called MOPS, Mothers of Preschoolers. Maybe you've heard about MOPS. You can go to www.mops.org.au and see if there are any groups in your area... or even start one... or look for other moms support groups in your area. MOPS has been a constant source for friendships, leadership building, and growing as a mom and follower of Christ, so I encourage you to find a group of ladies who can understand what you're going through.
I'd love to stay in touch... it'd be fun to have a friend in Australia!
-Kim :)
Thanks Kim for your words of encouragement. I was surprised to see I had a reply so quickly. I do have a morning mum's group I go to on Thursday's run by our local Pastor's wife, Tara . I haven't gone along much the past 2mths because my children had been sick with colds (it takes so long for a illness like colds/flu or worst still gastro )to go through all of us now that we have the 5 kiddies, I need a couple of weeks to catch up on everything at home. I'm sure you know what it is like though.
ReplyDeleteAll of my close girlfriends only have 2 children, as do most of the young couples in our church. I'm always being praised on my efforts of raising 5. I'm the eldest of 6 children, and was the eldest grandchild on both sides of my family, so I have had a lot of years of practise. It still can be very difficult juggling their different ages, personalities and demands. My husband Nathan, works shiftwork at a local timber mill. I used to get lonely when he would be working nights, but the children have put a stop to that. I took up scrapbooking for a couple of years, which was a real craze with alot of my friends. I don't really have much time for it at the moment though.
These past few days have been pretty tough as I had a close friend/client pass away from Emphysemia on the weekend. I have been doing her hair since my eldest daughter Madison was a baby, and the past 2 yrs she has been so unwell I would regulary go to her home and colour/cut/blowdry her hair. She wasn't a christian, but I believe God allowed me to witness to her and that seeds were planted in her life. I haven't had to deal with death much in my 32 yrs, so I took it pretty hard. Her funeral was today and her husband John was so brave. He was a wonderful man to her. I felt to cook him a meal yesterday and take it around to him, and I'm so happy I did. He is on his own now, but had his 2 sister's fly in from interstate. So as a man, had nothing planned for meals. He was so overwhelmed but very thankful. It brings me so much joy blessing others. I think that's why in Noeline's last few months it blessed me that I could bless her by making her feel and look beautiful. I coloured her hair for the last time on Tues lastweek (Noeline's 63rd Birthday), and it was such a special day. Since my youngest daughter Lilly-Mae was born in Dec 08, I have taken her with me on these hairdressing visits which also brought such joy to her. I'm going to miss her very much, but have told John I'm going to be inviting him up home to have Dinner with my family on a regular basis.
You will come to know very quickly being friends with me that I'm a chatterbox. I think it's my limited amount of 'girlfriend time'that I have sooooo much to say when I get going. My poor husband LOL.
I'm so happy that you have replied. Jenny's song 'What do I know of holy?'really stayed in my head that I just had to find out who sang it, and stumbled across her blog. She has an amazing calling on her life and is blessed to have a friend like you who has her back, and gives her the support she obviously needs. I can't imagine what it must be like touring. Especially with a little one like Annie.
I look forward to hearing from you and telling you all about life in Australia. Have you ever been here before? My daughter Annastasia's dream is to go to Disneyland, as is probably most 4 yr old girls. Who knows, maybe one day.
Take care, Tam
Hey Tamara!
ReplyDeleteI'm so sorry to hear about your friend, Noeline. I can see that she was precious to you and I know God used you in her life to bring her joy and companionship. It's also wonderful how you are reaching out to John. What a blessing your family will be to him as he grieves, too. You will never be able to replace her, but I know you will find friendships near and dear to your heart like that again.
I'm glad you have other mommy-friends, although I know that it's different since they don't have as many kids as you. It's funny how your perspective changes the more kids you have!
So, where do you live in Australia? I've never been there before, so I'd have to look at a map for sure. I have read some books by Michael Frost who pastors somewhere in Australia. And other than that, and the Wiggles, and images of Sydney or the Crocodile Hunter in my head, I really don't know too much about the continent. I'd love to learn more - and eventually travel there some day!
What church do you go to? is it small church?
You said you were a hair stylist... what other things are you passionate about? or what things do you like to do?
I'm in Dallas, Texas. We go to a pretty large church, (First Baptist Richardson www.fbcr.org) but our small group is about 20 of us. Our church hosts a moms group of about 30 moms. I've been in a MOPS (or now our Moms' Connection) group for 10 years - ever since my oldest was born. I've made lots of friends through that. But I've also made my closest friends through serving together - in youth ministry, in the moms ministry, and other projects. I'm drawn to people who have a heart for service.
I love music and singing (although I can't play any instruments.) And I'm pretty passionate about missions, especially to unreached peoples. I have several close friends who serve a missionaries across the world... I've actually been to Indonesia on a prayer walk (not too far from Australia in the grand picture), and Mexico, Africa and Latvia on mission trips. The hardest part for me is being sensitive to the leading of the Holy Spirit as to who to help, when to help, when and where to go, etc, since my heart is moved by suffering and separation from God all over the world, anytime I hear about it.
You can learn so much about me by reading my blog entries. I sometimes say more there than I do to regular friends, just because I enjoy writing about things that are deep within me, or things God's moving me about.
If you'd like to, you can e-mail me, since that might be a better form of correspondence than these blog comments. :) My address is LLverriere@yahoo.com.
It's fun to have met you through Jenny. I look forward to being pen pals of sorts. :)
I will be praying for you to find a good friend soon!
You can be praying for Jenny. If you've read her blog lately, you know that she is going through some pretty rough stuff, which I'm certain is spiritual warfare. It's just too weird and direct to be anything else. And I know this upcoming CD will be used by God in some really powerful ways, so Satan is itching to throw them off their game. I can't imagine being a new mommy and dealing with all this! She's one tough gal who, thankfully, is sensitive to the Holy Spirit, and knows where her strength must come from. Please pray that she remembers that, and that God sends his angels to protect and attend her through all this.
Oh, and if you want, you can pray for me this week, since my husband is away on business. He's such a big help to me, that when he's gone I really feel it... I thank God every day that I am not a single mom... I don't know how they do it!
That's all for now. I've rambled enough. Have a great week, Tamara!
-Kim :)
Hey Tamara!
ReplyDeleteJust want you to know I have been thinking about you. You are on my prayer list, so I do pray for you often.
I see you haven't blogged lately... neither have I... just SO much going on with the kids and all.
How are you? Any new friendships? Any great insights you've learned lately that you want to pass my way?
Hope all is well with you and your family!
Love,
Kim :)